Cohen Blasts GOP Leadership for Subsidizing Billionaires Instead of Supporting Children

[MEMPHIS, TN] – After House Republican leadership violated their own policy of publically posting legislation at least 3 days in advance of a vote and jammed through an ultra-conservative Farm Bill with just a few hours’ notice, Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) expressed his disappointment with provisions of the legislation that continue billions of dollars in unnecessary subsidies to the largest farms and multimillion-dollar agribusinesses while providing nothing for nutrition, food stamp, and food bank programs that millions of children and families across the nation rely on to survive.

“For 50 years, the Farm Bill has provided balanced agricultural resources to both rural farmers and urban families,” said Congressman Cohen. “I am disappointed that Republican leaders broke their own rules and used this flatly partisan maneuver to strip out of the Farm Bill critical nutrition and food stamp programs that children and families in Memphis and across the country rely on. Republicans should not turn their backs on our nation’s cities or the less fortunate—and they should be ashamed that they did so simply to line the pockets of some of the wealthiest businesses in America.”